Etisalat has announced yet another initiative, which will significantly improve Internet stability and performance within UAE as well as across the whole region. The Corporation has tied up with Amsterdam-based Réseaux IP Européens Network Coordination Centre (RIPE NCC) to deploy one of the core root name servers that support the World Wide Web. This has been deployed in the main Etisalat Internet Hub in Abu Dhabi. The K-root name server is the second mirror root server in addition to the F-root name server installed in the Etisalat Internet Hub in Dubai last year.

Both eCompany’s customers within UAE and Emirates Internet Exchange’s (EMIX) customers outside UAE will benefit from this installation in terms of improvements in accessing websites and a more reliable and stable connection to the Internet. This implementation will add additional redundancy as the mirror of F-root name server in Dubai and K-root name server in Abu Dhabi are now physically collocated in the Emirates Internet Exchange (EMIX) backbone as part of its infrastructure.

The K-root name server is used by virtually all Internetworking software, including e-mail and web browsers. It is one of the 13 Domain Name System (DNS) root servers that resolve searches for domain names all over the world and forms a critical part of the global Internet infrastructure. DNS servers act as interfaces between host names and IP addresses and are more resilient to Denial of Service (DoS) attacks. This is necessary because computers only understand the IP address for a particular domain. Using anycast technology, the K-root name server system should improve the DNS response time for users in the UAE by providing shorter paths between clients and servers. Its introduction should see average delay time drop to around 15ms from 200ms, a 90 per cent reduction which translates to faster response time for users to reach websites.

“With the deployment of F-root name server and K-root name server, UAE enters the category of an advanced Internet enabled country on the global cyber map,” said Saeed Al Bahhar, General Manager – International Business, Etisalat.

Abdulla Hashim, Manager, UAEnic (United Arab Emirates Network Information Center) said: “This is a significant deployment for the UAE and the region and demonstrates Etisalat’s commitment to continue UAE’s leadership position in Internet access and performance through leading edge technology that benefits our users.”

“We are constantly on the lookout to try and develop a robust Internet access backbone for user convenience. The investment in deploying the additional mirror K-root name server is testimony to that aim.”